Archive for January, 2009

Matchups for the Super Bowl between the Pittsburgh Steelers and Arizona Cardinals at Raymond James Stadium:

When the Steelers have the ball

Just as the Steelers of the 1970s evolved from a run-it-down-your-throat offense to a more versatile mode, this group has balanced its attack. Indeed, when RB Willie Parker (39) couldn’t find much room against Baltimore in the AFC championship game, QB Ben Roethlisberger (7) took control. And the Cardinals’ defense, while quite stout for most of three postseason victories, hardly is on the level of the Ravens.

Pittsburgh will turn to Parker early, particularly seeking to draw Arizona’s standout safety, Adrian Wilson (24) closer to the line. If successful, the Steelers will keep pounding Parker, Mewelde Moore (21) and Gary Russell (33), but also will mix in some medium-range and deep throws to playmaker Santonio Holmes (10). Holmes’ 65-yard catch and run TD was the major offensive play in the AFC title game, and his contributions would be even more vital should fellow wideout Hines Ward (86) be limited or out with a knee injury.

More likely, the warrior Ward will play – and play well. He was the MVP of Pittsburgh 2006 Super Bowl win.

Arizona’s secondary has performed inconsistently in the playoffs, but has made seven interceptions, led by two each from Rod Hood (26) and rookie Dominique Rodgers-Cromartie (29). ARC could wind up with lots of solo coverage on Holmes, particularly if Ward is hobbled.

Steelers TE Heath Miller (83) has been a clutch performer and favorite target for Roethlisberger. His matchups with Wilson, Antrel Rolle (21) and Aaron Francisco (41), plus the linebackers, might be telling.

Arizona’s LBs have been very active in the playoffs, notably Karlos Dansby (58) and Gerald Hayes (54). Again, though, they aren’t in Baltimore’s class.

Roethlisberger often holds the ball too long, and he was sacked four times by the Ravens. Arizona has seven sacks in its three playoff games, with DEs Bertrand Berry (92) and Antonio Smith (94) providing the best pass rush and DT Darnell Dockett (90) being disruptive in all phases. They should find ways of pressuring Big Ben against an inconsistent offensive line that includes tackles Willie Colon (74) and Max Starks (78), guards Darnell Stapleton (72) and Chris Kemoeatu (68).

When the Cardinals have the ball

First priority: Keep Kurt Warner (13) upright.

While their running game has been revived behind veteran Edgerrin James (32) and rookie Tim Hightower (34) – both key contributors to the win over Philadelphia for the NFC crown – the Cardinals won’t survive if Warner doesn’t get time to pass.

Warner heads to his third Super Bowl owning the two most prolific passing days in the game’s history. He had 414 yards in the 2000 win over Tennessee when he was with the Rams, and 365 when St. Louis lost to New England two years later.

Expecting that many yards against the best, most intimidating defense in the league since the Ravens of eight years ago is dreaming. That doesn’t mean Arizona has no chance, because Warner remains a superb, clutch player with excellent touch. If tackles Mike Gandy (69) and Levi Brown (75) and guard Reggie Wells (74) give him time, he will produce.

Arizona certainly has the edge in receivers with the uncoverable Larry Fitzgerald (11), who already has set a record for postseason yards receiving (419) and has five playoff touchdowns, three against Philly. Even if Fitzgerald is double-teamed, he will find ways to be productive, so cornerbacks Ike Taylor (24), Deshea Townsend (26) and Bryant McFadden (20) will need plenty of support from hard-hitting Ryan Clark (25) and All-Pro safety Troy Polamalu (43), who has been sensational in the playoffs.

Limiting Fitzgerald somewhat is critical, and even then Anquan Boldin (81) and Steve Breaston (15) are dangerous. Both joined Fitz as 1,000-yard receivers this season.

The best way for “Blitzburgh” to keep the Cardinals from soaring is with a strong pass rush. Defensive Player of the Year James Harrison (92) is complemented in the linebacking corps by James Farrior (51), LaMarr Woodley (56) and Larry Foote (50). Up front, Aaron Smith (91) and Casey Hampton (98) are formidable against the pass and the run.

Special teams

Arizona’s kicking game is solid. Neil Rackers (1) made 25 of 28 field goals, which is excellent, but Pittsburgh’s Jeff Reed (3) is the superior placekicker and one of the best clutch kickers around.

Ben Graham (5) fared well since he took over the punting duties late in the season for Arizona, while J.J. Arrington (28) and Breaston are dangerous on kick runbacks.

But the Cardinals weren’t exactly brilliant in this area last weekend.

Pittsburgh always seems to get a huge play from Holmes, whose punt return for a score got the Steelers back into their divisional round win over San Diego. He can be hit or miss, though, and prone to bad decisions.

The Steelers are OK on kickoff returns, but their special teams strength is in coverage.

Coaching

A pair of second-year coaches who competed for the Steelers job after Bill Cowher retired in early 2007.

Mike Tomlin got the Pittsburgh gig, has led the Steelers to two AFC North titles and now to their second Super Bowl in four years. A disciple of the 4-3 defense, he stood behind coordinator Dick LeBeau and the 3-4 because that’s the best scheme for the talent on hand, and it’s paid off.

Tomlin wants to be physical in all aspects and has the right roster for it. He gives Roethlisberger just enough freedom for Big Ben to display why he’s a big winner.

Ken Whisenhunt was Cowher’s offensive coordinator when Pittsburgh won the 2006 Super Bowl. He was bypassed by Steelers management and took the job in Arizona, bringing another ’06 candidate, Russ Grimm, with him.

Whisenhunt’s best work has been erasing a losing culture in the Valley of the Sun _ helped, of course, by veteran leaders such as Warner, Wilson and James. His game-planning, particularly on offense, is strong. And, like Tomlin, he delegates well. Intangibles

The Cardinals are in their first Super Bowl _ they’ve never even come close before and already have surpassed their all-time victory total in the postseason (2) with their three wins this year. They have not gotten tight because they have been underdogs throughout, as they are for this game.

Their strong leadership and experience in key positions has served them well in the playoffs, never more so than in the 72-yard drive to winning TD against Philadelphia.

Pittsburgh’s latest Steel Curtain is among its most impressive, and this team won’t ever back down. It wants a rugged, field-position type of game featuring tough play on every down. Rarely does it get away from the style that been so defining in Steel City since the invention of football.

The Steelers could become the first franchise with six Super Bowl titles, a strong motivator. Then again, winning it for a first time is just as energizing for Arizona.

Anybody who thinks it is tough playing the halftime show at the Super Bowl with 150 million people watching should try serenading Barack Obama with the majestic granite visage of Abraham Lincoln staring over your shoulder.

Bruce Springsteen did.

“It kind of was a good warm-up for this,” Springsteen joked Thursday after arriving in Tampa with the E Street Band. “That takes some of the pressure off, you know.”

In his first news conference in more than 20 years, The Boss was as cool as ever.

Wearing black jeans, a black crewneck sweater and black boots, Springsteen and his band charmed a standing-room-only crowd by joking about his lack of football knowledge, that the group is still together _ and its members still alive _ and the tremendous year he’s having personally and professionally.

“Is there anybody from New Jersey? Don’t give them the microphone!” the Garden State native called out before taking questions in his first large forum since a 1987 news conference for Amnesty International.

But Springsteen has reason to celebrate.

His song, “The Wrestler,” from the movie of he same name, won a Golden Globe earlier this month, and he followed it with a performance at the National Mall to honor Obama two days before the inauguration. Springsteen was a huge Obama booster during the campaign.

His latest CD, “Working on a Dream,” was released Tuesday, and he’ll kick off a world tour in San Jose, Calif., on April 1.

“Good times,” the 59-year-old rocker smiled. “You just have years where things happen, or years where it’s quieter. But what’s special for me right now is I really believe our band is going through sort of a golden age. We’ve made three of what I think are some of our best records in a row, which is really one of the reasons we’re here. And the band, on the last tour, played the best its ever played.

“We’ve been on the road awhile. We’re some old soldiers. But the band is still really burning, and I really want people to know about the record. Good year, you know? It’s been great.”

So now the band plays Sunday’s halftime show of the Super Bowl, which is enjoying a run of booking major talent for the roughly 15-minute slot before the largest television event in the nation. Acts have recently included the Rolling Stones, U2, Paul McCartney, Prince and Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers.

The NFL said last year’s halftime show with Petty was watched by more than 148 million viewers in the U.S.

Springsteen, for years, had turned down invitations to play the Super Bowl, unsure of the legitimacy of such a performance. After all, for many years the halftime show was made up of local and college marching bands and drill teams.

But Springsteen said the opportunity to promote the album, and the upgraded production team that has given the invitation a prestige factor, changed his mind.

“Initially, it was sort of a novelty and so it didn’t quite feel right,” he explained. “But it was just like, this is the year. … Bands of our generation, you can sort of be seen on a stage like this or, like, not seen. There’s not a lot of middle places. It is a tremendous venue.”

The performance is expected to be a teaser for the upcoming tour, and scores of Las Vegas sports books are taking bets on the set list. Asked who ultimately decides what songs will be played, Springsteen staked his claim as leader of the band.

“I’m the Boss! The Boss decides what we play!” he yelled. “Nobody else decides. People suggest. Hint. Beg. Cajole. But I decide.”

Pittsburgh receiver Hines Ward said he was looking forward to the performance, and even had a song request.

“I love Bruce. I hope he plays ‘Born in the USA.’ He has a great voice when he says, ‘Boorrrn,’ “Ward said. “He has a lot of swag about himself. He’s very confident. When he’s up there performing, it’s all about him.”

Springsteen only offered one slight teaser, vowing to pack the bands’ usual emotion and energy into their brief performance.

“We want it to be a 12-minute party,” he said. “The idea of the show is, you are going to the Meadowlands, you get lost on the way. You are watching your clock, `Damn, the show is starting right now.’ You stop at a bar to get some directions, and the bar gets held up while you are there. So that takes another 45 minutes to get out of there.

“You come back and you miss your exit on the turnpike, and you are driving to get back around. And so you make it into the stadium 2 hours and 48 minutes into the show – that’s what you are going to see: the last 12 minutes.”

President Barack Obama said he’s pulling for the Pittsburgh Steelers over the Arizona Cardinals in football’s biggest game on Sunday – and he did so with a politician’s touch.

Obama said Thursday that he would root for Pittsburgh against the “long-suffering” and “great Cinderella story” Cardinals. His spokesman also said the president would have friends as well as a bipartisan group of lawmakers over to the White House to watch the game.

“I have to say, you know, I wish the Cardinals the best,” Obama said diplomatically. “You know, Kurt Warner is a great story, and he’s closer to my age than anybody else on the field.”

Warner, Arizona’s 37-year-old quarterback, came out of nowhere about a decade ago to take the St. Louis Rams to two Super Bowls, including a title in 2000. Just when he seemed washed up, Warner rose to the top again this year with a stellar performance. His team was not expected to make the playoffs, let alone get to the title game.

Steelers owner Dan Rooney, a longtime Republican, endorsed Obama’s presidential bid and campaigned for him. During Oval Office remarks, Obama noted that one of the Steelers most beloved former players, Franco Harris, had campaigned for him in Pittsburgh, too.

“Other than the (Chicago) Bears,” Obama said, “the Steelers are probably the team that’s closest to my heart.”

Obama spokesman Robert Gibbs said the invitation to watch the Super Bowl in the White House is part of the new administration’s efforts to work across the political aisle, similar to his bipartisan cocktail party Wednesday night at the executive mansion.

“You know, the president also wanted last night to be a little bit more social, you know, so that individuals could better get to know each other and understand where they’re coming from in these legislative disagreements,” Gibbs told reporters Thursday. “But, again, you know, the president’s outreach on this will continue.”

U.S. Sen. Bob Casey and his family were invited to the White House to watch the Super Bowl. The Pennsylvania Democrat will be routing for the Steelers and plans on bringing Terrible Towels and Eat’n Park cookies in Steelers colors for the First Family, Casey spokeswoman Kendra Barkoff said.

During the pregame show, Obama also planned to participate in a live interview on NBC with Matt Lauer.

Vice President Joe Biden, a native of Scranton, Pa., also is cheering for the Steelers. He told CNBC that he’s having a Super Bowl party at the vice president’s residence “with some of our Republican and Democratic friends.”

“I know you’re supposed to be one of these guys that says I’m not sure,” said Biden. “But I want to make clear, I’m rooting for the Steelers. Go, Mr. Rooney.”

Mid-American Conference Commissioner Rick Chryst is leaving the conference he has led since 1999.

The MAC announced Jan. 29 that Chryst is stepping down when his contract runs out June 30.

The 47-year-old Chryst is the third-longest serving commissioner in the 63-year history of the Cleveland-based conference.

In a statement released by the league, Chryst said he decided the time was right for him both personally and professionally to make a change. He didn’t say what he plans to do next. He didn’t immediately respond to a telephone message.

The MAC has retained an executive search firm to help find a replacement.

Chryst oversaw the move of the conference headquarters from Toledo to Cleveland in 1999.

Over the past 10 years, the MAC has grown to 13 teams for football and 12 for basketball. It began its men’s and women’s basketball tournament at Cleveland’s Quicken Loans Arena and its football championship game at Ford Field in Detroit.

The conference has also increased its television exposure at national, regional and local levels, mostly through a relationship with ESPN since 1999. The MAC recently reached a new eight-year agreement for football and men’s and women’s basketball that guarantees the conference a minimum of 25 events annually on one of ESPN’s networks.

MAC football has never been healthier or more competitive.

Since 1999, the MAC has 38 nonconference wins over schools from BCS automatic-qualifying conferences and seven wins over nationally ranked teams. The four victories over Big Ten teams in 2008 were the most the conference has ever had.

Columbia Gas of Ohio announced Jan. 30 a program that “could help all residential customers save up to $180 annually on home heating and energy costs,” according to a news release.

Partridge

Simple Energy Solutions features an online store and its rebate program to help customers reduce their natural gas consumption with energy-efficient products. Through the use of ENERGY STAR-qualified programmable thermostats and high-performance, energy-efficient showerheads, customers can save energy and lower their natural gas bill.

“Programmable thermostats can lower gas costs by up to $180 annually and high-performance, energy-efficient showerheads can help reduce hot water and energy usage without sacrificing water flow,” said Columbia Gas of Ohio President Jack Partridge. “This rebate program is just one of several solutions that we will make available this year to help customers save energy at their homes and businesses.”

Residential customers are eligible for rebates of $10 off qualified high-performance, energy-efficient showerheads and $25 off ENERGY STAR-qualified programmable thermostats. The rebates are offered through Columbia’s e-store at ColumbiaGasOhio.com/e-store or by calling 1-866-542-4767.

TMACOG has approximately 150 members in nine counties in northwest Ohio and southeast Michigan. TMACOG’s transportation planning area is Lucas and Wood counties and the three southern townships of Monroe County, Michigan.

On Oct. 28, a City of Toledo photo enforcement program camera clocked me driving 62 mph on the Anthony Wayne Trail. The posted speed limit on the Trail is 50 mph.
I knew the exact moment the camera flashed; as I was approaching a green light, a large Salvation Army truck rumbled up beside me and passed me. I admit I was traveling faster than 50 mph, but it seemed reasonable to me that the camera had been triggered by the truck, which beat me to the next traffic light by several lengths.
The “notice of liability” I received in the mail was accompanied by three sequential photos, two of which showed the truck passing me.
Now, if you catch me, you catch me, and I’ll pay up. In my 26 years of driving a car, I’ve received one speeding ticket that I remember. Let’s say I’m wrong and double that; a hypothetical two violations in 26 years isn’t perfect, but it’s not a habit or pattern, either.
I hate the idea of electronic eyes watching like unblinking sentinels, and because the camera showed the truck passing me, I had a legitimate question.
My appeal was Jan. 22, in the city council chambers in One Government Center. As I signed in, the security guard recognized me from the paper and wished me good luck with my appeal. He did not say so, but I received the impression he has not witnessed many people leaving the hearings with their arms raised in victory.
The hearings are now public, thanks to the legal efforts of the Coalition Opposed to Additional Spending and Taxes (COAST). At the hearing was a police officer referred to as “Sergeant,” a clerk keeping track of the hearings and a hearing examiner.
The man in front of me was making the case that his car slid through an intersection on icy roads that had not been plowed or salted, setting off the photo enforcement camera. The hearing examiner said, “Let’s watch the video,” which surprised me. I did not know the cameras were taking and storing video. I thought the video would help me make my case when my turn came, but the astute headline reader has probably figured out how my story ends.
The officer, clerk, examiner and driver watched the video, and the examiner, said, “Yes, you were clearly trying to stop.”
The officer then said, “The city will maintain you were driving too fast for the conditions.”
And that was that. End of appeal.
My turn.
The hearing panel was civil and professional as I asked about the camera’s ability to distinguish my vehicle from the truck passing me. The officer and examiner were tremendously confident that the cameras made the distinction, but the hearing examiner invited me up to watch the video, to determine if I was keeping pace with the even faster truck.
The video, shown in one medium-size box on a laptop computer, lasted about three seconds. First, there are no cars in the frame. Then, two vehicles pass through the scene. Three seconds of actual time tracking the vehicles might be generous. The examiner watched the video, then said, “You were clearly keeping pace.”
“Was I?” I asked. “I’m not sure you can tell anything from that.”
The clerk laughed and made a light-hearted joke that I was maintaining the footage “doesn’t go that deep.”
She made the joke twice, actually.
“How can you tell anything from that? I asked.
The examiner adjusted his smudged glasses and said, “I have a lot of experience squinting at these videos. This hearing sides with the city. The sergeant will tell you how to pay your fine.”
And that was that. End of appeal.
Then, the examiner casually said “The cameras are set to go off at 12 mph over the speed limit. If you had been going 1 mph slower, you wouldn’t have set it off.”
So, I am to believe the camera can distinguish 1 mph between two vehicles four feet apart at 60 mph. No calibration issues, no technology issues, no margin for error?
Chris Finney, a board member of COAST, told me that my experience was typical.
“It’s not about due process, it’s about generating revenue for the city,” he said. “It’s not about safety; it’s about forfeiting 400 years of civil rights law for $120.”
I checked with Maj. William Greenaway of the local Salvation Army, and he said one of their drivers did receive a ticket and pay the fine for the Oct. 28 “violation.”
I have not yet paid my fine. Finney urged me not to, saying, “You don’t have to pay these tickets. It’s a fraudulent scam. They do not have any judgment against you, no judge has ruled against you. They would have to take you to court and prove their case all over again, and there is no record they have done or are willing to do that.
“They have no authority to get liens on you, touch your bank account, impact your license tags, garnish your wages or in any other way enforce the fine. It’s a kangaroo court, and I hope you don’t pay it.”
I have a few weeks to think about it.
As I left the hearing, I waved at the security guard, shaking my head that the results did not go my way. He did not seem surprised.
He’s seen it before, many times.
Learn more about the efforts to dismantle the red light camera “photo enforcement program” atwedemandavote.com/toledo/.
Michael S. Miller is editor in chief of Toledo Free Press. Contact him at mmiller@toledofreepress.com.

Last week, our special section on the Meta-Plan put the spotlight on regional economic development efforts. The plan is now called the less cryptic “Toledo-Regional Economic Plan,” but the mission remains the same: to enable conversation between local economic development agencies to make sure all the players know what is going on at any given time. UT, the Toledo-Lucas County Port Authority, Lucas County Improvement Corporation, Toledo Regional Chamber of Commerce, City of Toledo, Regional Growth Partnership and Toledo Metropolitan Area Council of Governments are just some of the organizations that are working with the state to move the development ball downfield with unity and cooperation.
It is important to call attention to this information again because as our economy struggles to recover from its slump, communication and cooperation will be imperatives, not luxuries.
As Dan Johnson, former UT president and one of the initial movers of the Meta-Plan idea, wrote in our 2008 special section, “The rationale and arguments for strategic, high-level collaboration among our economic development agencies and organizations were discovered a long time ago by many successful cities and regions. Many are well-known and include Minneapolis, Indianapolis, Louisville, Ky., and Charlotte, N.C., to name a few. Some have pursued these strategies through regional governance, some through regional alliances and others through enlightened private- and public-sector leadership. Whatever the tool chosen for strategic, high-level collaboration, those cities and regions that have taken that step in the past are now among our nation’s leading metropolitan areas with respect to economic development.
“If we succeed in developing a more formal, integrated, collaborative approach to economic development in the region, we can all be confident that our chances for success have increased.”
Those words were true then and ring truer now.
When we assemble next year’s look at this vital effort, we will hopefully be able to show some tangible progress and results.

Thomas F. Pounds is president and publisher of Toledo Free Press. Contact him at tpounds@toledofreepress.com.

My home was built in 1885. It is old, inefficient and nearly impossible to heat properly. With old windows, poor insulation and drafty doors, I have to set the thermostat at 72 degrees just to achieve an actual temperature of 68 degrees. I’m obviously losing a percentage of the heat I’m paying for because of the inefficiencies of my home. I know that I can spend some time and money improving the home to make it more efficient and, some day, I will. Until then, I know I have to set the thermostat at 72 for my family and me to be comfortable.
Paying taxes can be frustrating in much the same manner. You work hard for your money only to have some siphoned off each week by the government. Like the weather, taxes are a fact of life. Every working person in our country knows that they’re going to lose a percentage of their income to taxes. Therefore, there is no sense wasting energy being stressed or even angry about having to pay taxes. Your energy is better spent figuring out how to take home the money you want and need.
We all have a finite number of things we must accomplish each week in order to make a living. We know that if we talk to enough people, write enough proposals and make enough phone calls and visits, that we will hit the goal we made for ourselves at the beginning of the week.
It is easy to become discouraged when sales efforts come up short. You may find yourself thinking, “There has to be an easier way.” You may be right but remember: You already have a plan to make money in place. Take that plan and work it now. Work it with passion and vigor to assure that you have a positive cash flow in your life.
Whatever you are doing to make money, do more of it to make up for its inherent inefficiencies and imperfections. Your efforts will put cash in your pocket and a smile on your face. With your monetary obligations met for the moment, you’ll have the time and emotional resources to take a look at your plan. You’ll have the ability to make the improvements to your sales or business plan that you need to make without the feeling of being watched by a hungry lion.
Work harder first. When you are performing to the best of your ability, you are able to get five days worth of work done in three, leaving you two full days to improve your methods, become better at your job and find more efficient ways to sell or run your business.
Hitting the ground running every morning is your road to success. Assure that your basic resources are covered and work hard and avoid the trap of perpetual planning. When you lock yourself in an office and try to craft a perfect plan for 90 percent of your week — every week — you never have a chance test your plan. You need a fine balance of action and planning to get where you are going, and action comes first. You alone control the amount of action you take each and every week. Create enough action early in the week, and you will have plenty of time for planning, creating and improving. In fact, you’ll find that your greatest creative breakthroughs come during moments of intense action.
We all set our own action thermostat to a level that produces the results we need to be comfortable, if you’re not comfortable with your results, turn up the heat. Whether we’re talking about money, heat or making sales, you have everything you need right now to create a masterpiece with your life.
My father always tells me, “Happiness is a positive cash flow.” So, get to work and work like you’ve never worked before.